Auxiliary tray for refrigerator shelves



July 19, 1960 A. F. ROMANO AUXILIARY TRAY FOR REFRIGERATOR SHELVES 2 sheets sheet 1 Filed April 9, 1957 FIG. 3

3 noerltor ALBERT F. ROM/1N0 WM Gttomcg custard jars and the like.

United States Patent AUXILIARY TRAY FOR' REFRIGERAL'I OR- SHELVES Albert F. Romano, 17 06 W. Steigere St.,I'Norrist0wn; Pa.

Filed Apr. 9, 1957, Ser- No. 651,726

2 Claims. (l.-211--139)' The present invention relates to a shelf or tray such as is ordinarily included in a refrigerator, and is con-; cerned' primarily with an auxiliary tray that intended to be mounted on and supported from a=main shelf that is movably mounted in the refrigerator.

At thepresent time, there are two main; of mov able' trays that are included ina. refrigerator. In one form, the tray is semicircular in shape and is mounted within the refrigerator cabinet for pivotal movement. Thus, when the" refrigerator isclosedi the semicircular edge of the main tray is disposed within the cabinet. Afterthe' refrigerator is opened, the tray' is rotated on its axis to move the semicircular tray outwardly into accessible position.

Inother types of refrigerators including rectangularly shaped shelves, it the practice to mount one or moreof'the' shelves for rolling or sliding movement sothat it may be moved outwardly to afford better access thereto.

The modern housewife often has need of storing various types of small articleswithin the refrigerator. Among such might be noted dessert dishes, fruit cups,

Each of such articles in itself occupies but a small amount of'space. Yet-,there is often need for storing alarge number of sucharticles within the" refrigerator. The present invention is founded on the belief that if one of the main movable shelves of a refrigerator is provided with an auxiliary tray along an edge thereof its utility is enhanced and it is possible and entirely practical to store a large number of the small receptacles above noted within the refrigerator with a maximum of convenience.

With the foregoing conditions in mind, the present invention has in view as its foremost objective the provision of a movable refrigerator shelf that is provided.

with an auxiliary tray along an edge thereof and in spaced relation above the main tray. With this arrangement, small receptacles may be stored on the main tray beneath the auxiliary tray and also on top of the auxiliary tray. Moreover, being located on the periphery of the shelf, the latter may be moved to bring the auxiliary tray into a position in which it is conveniently accessible.

More in detail, the invention has as an object the provision of a rotating refrigerator tray having a semicircular peripheral edge that is provided with an auxiliary tray that conforms in shape to said semicircular edge and which is supported from the main tray above the portion immediately adjacent to the semicircular edge.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a sliding or rolling refrigerator tray of rectangular shape having side edges with an auxiliary tray along one or both of said side edges.

There may be occasions when the auxiliary tray is not needed and it is desired to remove it from the main shelf. Accordingly, another object of the invention is to provide an auxiliary tray for a removable refrigerator shelf "ice that is supported from said main tray over an" edge per-- tion thereof by removable supporting means.

For a full and more complete understanding of-th'e invention, reference may be had t'othe fohbwing description and accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a rotating refrigerator shelf with an auxiliary tra-yapplied-thereto in accordance with the precepts of this invention; 7

Figure 2 is another perspective illustrating the main shelf; the auxiliary tray and supporting elements inexploded relation;

Figure 3 is a top plan viewof'the auxiliary tray per. se;

Figure 4 is a detailedsect-ibn through one side of the auxiliary'tray and main shelf and is" taken about on the plane represented by the line 4-4'- of Figure: l-

Figure 5' is a perspective view of aslidi'n'g or rolling shelf with auxiliary trays applied to the side edges thereofj Figuredis another perspective showi'ngthe-m'ain shelf, auxiliary trays and supporting means in explbded relation; and

Figure-7* is a detailed verticalsection through one of the auxiliary trays and a portion of" the main shelf.

Referring now-to the diawihgsa-ndfirst' more .pa'rticularly to Figures 1 t'o 4 inclusive; arevolving-type'refrigerator shelf is therein illustrated andreferred toby the reference character 10? The shelf" 10 is mounted on a vertical post 11 in a welldinown manner for rotative movement. shelffl-W-has a" straight edge, 12 and a curved edge 13' that is somewhat in-excess of a semicircle:

Referringnowmoreparticularly to-Figure-4j the'c'u'rved edge 13 is shown as being defined by a raised head 14 and a depending skirt or flange 15.

An auxiliary tray is shown at 16. It has a shape corresponding to the curved edge 13, being slightly greater than a semicircle and is defined by an outer curved edge 17, an inner curved edge 18 and an end edge 19.

In order to support the auxiliary tray 16 from the main shelf 10, a plurality of supporting members are employed. Each of these supporting elements is referred to in its entirety by the reference character S. As shown in Figure 1, three of the supporting members S are employed, although this number may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention.

As shown in Figure 4, the edges 17 and 18 of the tray 16 may take the form of downturned flanges 20 which provide an annular track or recess for receiving a pedestal 21. The pedestal 21 is secured to the top of a vertical upright 22 that constitutes a part of the suppont S. Secured to the lower end of the upright 22 is a curved bracket member 23 that fits over the bead 14, terminating in a lip 24 which engages the upper surface of the tray 10. The lower end of the upright 22'is formed as a position over the bead 14. The auxiliary tray 16 is then positioned with the pedestals 21 being received in the recess defined by the flanges 20. When so positioned, the space beneath the auxiliary tray 16 is available for receiving small receptacles and additional such receptacles may be placed on the tray 16 itself. Obviously, the auxiliary tray 16 is brought into accessible position by rotating the main tray 10.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 5, 6 and 7, the form of the invention as applied to a sliding or rolling tray will be described.

A main shelf 27 of rectangular formation has side edges defined by flanges 28 and 29. It is intended that this shelf 27 be mounted in a refrigerator cabinet for rolling or sliding action so that it may be moved outwardly or inwardly as occasion demands.

While the main shelf 27 may take any of many structural forms, one type of shelf which is meeting with widespread approval is made up of a plurality of cross bars 30 that are anchored to a front edge bar 31 and a rear edge bar 32 in a well-known manner, Such an open framework permits of circulation of air within the refrigerator.

A pair of auxiliary trays are each referred to in its entirety by the reference character T. Each of the trays T includes side edge bars 33 and 34, end bars 35 and 36 and inner cross bars 37.

The auxiliary tray T on one side is supported from the flange 28 by a pair of supporting members, each comprising a vertical upright 38 terminating in a U- shaped flange 39 at the top and a clip 40 at the bottom. The clip 40 is intended to encompass the flange 28 while the U-shaped member 39 receives the edge bar 33.

The edge 34 may be supported by an inner support 41 that is formed at the top with a curled-over beadlike part 42 that is fitted about the side member 34 and has at the bottom a U-shaped clip 43 that is slipped onto one of the cross bars 30.

It is evident that the trays T are removable due to the fact that the supporting members 38 are removable. Moreover, even with the members 38 in position on the flanges 28 and 29, trays T may be swung downwardly much in the manner of a drop leaf table, simply by removing the U-shaped clips 43 from the bars 30 which planar horizontally disposed main shelf having a generally semicircular edge and a straight edge extending between the ends of said semicircular edge, means mounting said main shelf for rotation about a generally vertical axis generally through the center of curvature of said semicircular edge, an upstanding relatively wide bead extending along said semicircular edge and having a transversely arcuate upper surface, a relatively narrow skirt extending along and depending from the outer region of said bead, a plurality of spaced resilient clips each extending vertically on the exterior of said skirt having its lower end portion bent upward about a relatively short radius for snug engagement about the lower edge of said skirt and having its upper end portion bent downward about a relatively large radius snugly engaged over said head, a standard upstanding from each of said clips, and an auxiliary shelf of semiannular configuration seated on the upper ends of said standards.

2. A refrigerator construction according to claim 1, in combination with a pair of depending flanges extending respectively along the longitudinal edges of said auxiliary shelf for retaining the latter in position on said standards.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,718,738 Friedmann June 25, 1929 1,797,884 Talabac Mar. 24, 1931 2,239,392 Levick Apr. 22, 1941 2,628,880 Kader Feb. 17, 1953 2,813,635 Schumacher Nov. 19, 1957 

